What Do You Do When You Are Too Busy?

Usually when you tell people you are too busy in your business (you have so many customers or clients you can’t get to it all), you aren’t going to get a whole lot of sympathy.  You will hear things like, “That is a good problem to have.”

And it is…to a point.

To the point of you working too many hours, neglecting your family and friends, and impacting your health.

This is where it can lead to fast.  We all started our business in hopes of getting here actually, but the reality is that here, busy and burning out, isn’t all that fun and can create long-term damage.

Side Note: I usually write about my past personal business experiences or I write about knowledge I have accumulated over the years.  I usually like to read about people who are sort of journaling as they go.  I like to feel their pain, euphoria, and experiences in the moment with the writer.  Yet, I don’t usually write about something in the moment.  But, this is an exception.

What I Tell Clients To Do If They Are Too Busy

Right now I am hitting that point.  This point of busyness is where I tell clients to:

• Hire someone
• Raise your prices
• Turn stuff down that isn’t your exact niche
• Get a waiting list

I have been here before and I have done all of these things at some time or another.  That is why I am so fortunate to have a practice full of ideal clients and a great team of people working alongside with me.

But, here we go again.  And remember, I just wrote a post about understanding how big you want to be and grow.

It’s hard, isn’t it?

Superstition and Jesus ARE Mutually Exclusive

Sometimes it isn’t even about the money or the need, it is merely an opportunity to do more of what God has called you to do.

I think one of the reasons I don’t like to write about what I am going through in the moment is that I don’t want to jinx myself.  Seriously, the first thought I had is that God can fix this issue quickly by not sending anymore ideal clients to me.

Then I remember that superstition and Jesus don’t belong in the same thought…the same blog post…or the same Christian follower.

It is hard though, and I want you to know that I truly understand exactly where you may be right now.  I get here myself.

So here I am sitting on my deck at 6 a.m. looking at my schedule.  I have 8 hours of direct clients today.  That means I really have no margin in my day to talk and work with my team, return calls or emails, or to handle anything that comes up out of the plan.

That isn’t wise.

If something isn’t wise, then we should make a change.  Not keep doing it.

A Sample Plan

Here are my plans to handle the current situation:

1.  Set the number of direct hours per day.  I will only allow 6 direct client hours in any given day.  This allows margin to work on the business and with the team.
2.  Even out the week.  I will move the schedule around so that each day is more balanced.
3.  I will raise prices for new clients coming in.  Also, I will set appointments a couple of weeks out so I can catch up with my current client load.
4.  I will look for someone to add to our team.  This isn’t that easy because our needs require someone to be a business generalist expert.  They need to be an expert in a variety of business areas in order to coach our clients on their variety of needs.  They also need to be a strong Christian, as faith-based coaching is the core of what we do.  It isn’t a technique, but it is an imperative world view.
5.  We will stay focused on our key services.  Our team is capable in all areas of general business, however, there is still areas we do not have significant resources built up and in place. We need to let those go and refer them out to others more capable.  For us, that would be things like accounting services.

I will keep you posted on how this works out.  Sometimes I start with an action list that just puts a patch on things.  I pray and wait for God to change my paradigm and help me see the big picture differently.  Other times, I just need to do the blocking and tackling foundational pieces of building a business.

It’s The Journey, Not The Destination 

All small business owners encounter the same growing pains.  I am no different.  And as you know, it is sometimes easier to help others at times, than it is to help yourself.  To help ourselves, we have to objectively look at our own business just as we would someone else.

I am committed to doing just that.

And I am committed to sharing our journey with you.

Where are you?  Are you in the same place as we are?  Or are you stuck someplace, not able to grow?  If you are stuck, you may try out our FREE Crossroads Clarity Kit.  Trust me, it is a living, organic assessment and process.  I just went through it again myself for Crossroads and it identified places for me to start.  Come start with us…start here.